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Haunted town in America that's entirely abandoned and is illegal to visit

Home> News> US News

Published 13:18 11 Oct 2025 GMT+1

Haunted town in America that's entirely abandoned and is illegal to visit

Whether you believe in the supernatural or not, these stories are odd

Gerrard Kaonga

Gerrard Kaonga

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The stories of supernatural incidents at this weird Connecticut town really make you wonder if that's why it's also illegal to visit.

In America, you would be forgiven for thinking you can just about visit anywhere but this really isn’t the case.

Some small pockets of the vast nation are illegal to enter, and we aren’t talking about secret military bases, here.

Way back in the early 1740s, a group of people settled in the area located in a portion of Cornwall, CT.

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Many of those people were from a family called the Dudleys, and so aptly named the town - can you guess?- Dudleytown.

Dudleytown is located in Cornwall, Connecticut (TikTok/@dhelto79)
Dudleytown is located in Cornwall, Connecticut (TikTok/@dhelto79)

Located in a valley called the Dark Entry Forest (Yeah... i’m not going in there), it was used as a farm until the 19th century, until many residents eventually left in search of more fertile land.

And it's just as well they did leave, because others weren't so lucky.

When one resident, Nathaniel Carter, moved to the town, six of his relatives became sick and died of cholera. The remaining family members left the town, only to be killed when they settled on new land in New York.

Another man, Gershon Hollister, was building a barn for his neighbor, William Tanner, when he died suddenly in Dudleytown. Tanner himself is rumoured to have become obsessed with speaking about creatures coming out of the woods at night - a claim also echoed by his neighbor.

In 1804, a general named Herman Swift was living in the town when his wife, Sara Faye, was struck by lightning while on their front porch and died. Grief-stricken, the general himself also passed away.

The town is closed to the public (TikTok/@dhelto79)
The town is closed to the public (TikTok/@dhelto79)

Over the years, more and more residents died, and a number of people came forward with stories about seeing creatures in the tree line surrounding the town.

By the time 1900 came around, almost all of the residents had either died or left, and the town became completely abandoned when the members of the last remaining family died or disappeared.

A few years later, Dr. William Clarke came across the town and wanted to use it for a second home. After taking a trip to New York in 1918, Clark returned to the house to find his wife in distress, claiming there were creatures in the woods.

Clark moved away from Dudleytown, though he helped create the 'Dark Entry Forest Association' to help preserve the remains of the habitat and the surrounding forest.

Today, only cellar holes and a few stone foundations remain in the privately owned Dudleytown and it's illegal to visit to prevent trespassers and vandals.

However, many people still attempt to make their way in, and have reportedly felt phantom hands touching them as they do.

Featured Image Credit: Roanoke Tales via YouTube

Topics: News, US News, Travel

Gerrard Kaonga
Gerrard Kaonga

Gerrard is a Journalist at UNILAD and has dived headfirst into covering everything from breaking global stories to trending entertainment news. He has a bachelors in English Literature from Brunel University and has written across a number of different national and international publications. Most notably the Financial Times, Daily Express, Evening Standard and Newsweek.

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